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St. Nicholas Street, Aberdeen. 1898
363 This image taken in 1898, shows two prominent Aberdeen citizens crossing St. Nicholas Street under the watchful gaze of a statue of Queen Victoria. The building behind them was then the Town and County (now Clydesdale) Bank. These two individuals were lifelong friends and both came from a poor background, however their industry and intelligence, combined with self education led to their successful careers. William Cadenhead on the left began work in a thread factory but later became a traveller for a wine and spirit merchant, eventually succeeding to the business. He died on 11th December 1904 aged 85. William Carnie on the right was apprenticed as an engraver, but his ambition to write for newspapers was fulfilled when he began on the North of Scotland Gazette. However in 1861, he was appointed as Clerk and Treasurer of Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and the Royal Lunatic Asylum. After his retirement he wrote three volumes entitled Reporting Reminiscences covering the period 1850 - 1876, recollecting local events and people he knew. He died on 2nd January 1908 aged 83. Treasure 32: George Washington Wilson South Africa Photography Collection
2320 George Washington Wilson is one of the great names in 19th century photography, famous for capturing images of people, buildings and landscapes across Scotland. His photography drew attention to the beauty of his country, but his travels further afield are not as well known.
As an innovative pioneer in photography, George Washington Wilson's work reflected the reality and attitudes of society during his lifetime (1823-1893). In our collections we hold a vast selection of photographs and portraits taken by the G. W. Wilson Company in South Africa. These images were taken by his son, Charles Wilson, and Fred Hardie, a company photographer of George Washington Wilson & Co.
The company's photographs of South Africa captured scenes of the country which would have been perceived as unusual and exotic to British people at the time.
South Africa and its Treasures
The majority of British colonization was concentrated in South Africa during the 19th century. In the past, the country was colonized in order to control one of the main trade routes to India. Due to the abundance of resources such as spices and tea, European interest in Africa increased dramatically in the late 19th century, especially with the discovery of gold and diamonds in the 1860s-1880s.
On their return to Britain, George Washington Wilson & Co presented many photographs showing these natural resources, from the Robinson Gold mine in Johannesburg to De Beers Diamond Mines in Kimberley.
Tea was also a very valuable resource, and people in Britain were keen to learn more about its production and its use in South Africa.
Photography and Tourism
The collection held by Aberdeen City Libraries shows local places of interest in South Africa. These photographs capture Cape Town and Johannesburg, two of the biggest cities in the country. Many Europeans emigrated to these cities in the 19th century, due to the discovery of valuable resources in the surrounding area.
With the rapid rise of tourism in this period, George Washington Wilson & Co. looked for new ways to promote and sell their work. Around 1880-1890, they started to commercialize their photography via picture postcards, a relatively new concept in Britain. This new form of media met with huge success as it was easy to write and cheap to send. It soon became the standard way to communicate with friends and family when abroad, a holiday tradition which remains today.
The postcards, in colour and having a standard size, featured many different scenes from South Africa and were viewed as an innovative way to publicize the country - and the works of photographic firms such as George Washington Wilson & Co. King Edward Statue Unveiling
2709 An Adelphi Series postcard showing the public unveiling of the statue of King Edward VII at the corner of Union Bridge and Union Terrace in October 1914.
A large crowd assembled for the event despite inclement weather. The statue, which was funded by public subscription, was designed by Alfred Drury and unveiled by Lord Bryce. It replaced a statue of Prince Albert that was moved to the area in front of the Central Library at the other end of Union Terrace.
Aberdeen Local Studies hold two copies of this postcard. In reference to the statue, someone has written on the rear of one: "Very nice. If you saw it you would say they could cut anything in granite".
The other postcard appears to have the latter part of a longer message dating from the First World War period. It is addressed to Camille Briendo at Châtéau de Nantes and reads "I hope I shall be accepted but as I am slightly short-sighted, I may be rejected. Perhaps I shall see you before this war is over. As soon as I know, I shall write you. As long as I am here I shall".
Also of interest in the postcard's image is a large sign for James Bannochie & Sons at their premises at 19 Belmont Street. They were a well established firm of plasterers and tilers in Aberdeen. James Bannochie died aged 70 on 29 June 1909.
The roof of the building at 49 Belmont Street, then known as the Trades Hall, and what would eventually become the Belmont Cinema, is painted to read "Coliseum". The Coliseum Cinema was opened on 22 August 1910 and was run by Messers Walker and Company. Treasure 8: Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management
178 During 2015, Scotland celebrates the year of Food and Drink and this theme is continued as part of the Celebrate Aberdeen weekend in August. Keeping the theme in mind we would like to reveal "The Book of Household Management" by Mrs Isabella Mary Beeton, one of the most famous cookery books ever published.
Isabella Mayson was born on 12 March 1836 in London and it was whilst studying in Heidelberg she took to pastry making which she continued to practice at a local confectioners upon her return to England. In 1856, she married Samuel Beeton, a well-known editor and publisher and began to write articles on cooking and household management for the English Woman's Domestic Magazine.
In 1861, Beeton's Book of Household Management' was published. It was an immediate success, selling over 60,000 copies in its first year of publication and nearly two million by 1868.
Isabella died young at the age of 28 on 6 February 1865 of an infection following the birth of her fourth child but Samuel Beeton went on to publish a 2nd edition in 1869. In 1888 there was a major revision, with 27 new sections which included menus, table decorations, directions for using tinned meats and a section on American, Colonial and Continental cookery.
Aberdeen City Libraries hold a copy of this entirely new edition and it is numbered "five hundred and fifty-eighth thousand". It is 1644 pages in length with 13 beautiful colour plates and 68 full page illustrations. It includes a section on menus for all seasons with menus in both English and French. It is an absolute treasure and a tribute to Mrs Beeton that a version is still reproduced today. Treasure 30: G M Fraser Local History Lectures to Children - Selection of Tickets
203 Our treasure from the Library archive reflects the policy of the Library in the early 20th century and very much as it is today - "to get closely into touch with the children of the community" (Library Annual report 1913/14).
G M Fraser delivered a series of free local history lectures (in a series of 4) to children in the Juvenile Department every winter from 1914 - until the last one in February 1936. However there was one exception! After his first lecture in November 1928 he slipped on ice and broke 3 ribs so the remaining 3 winter lectures were cancelled.
Topics for the lectures included Historical buildings, Streets of Aberdeen, Place names, Battlefields, Streams and Lochs, Hill Forts, School Names and many more.
Tickets for the lectures were distributed with the co-operation of the Elementary Schools and each lecture was attended by up to 300 schoolchildren.
The earliest ticket we have in our collection is for the final lecture of the first series, "Historic Street Names in Aberdeen" on 11 February 1915, seen on display with a selection of others. The very first lecture was given on 6 November 1914 "An Evening in Historical Aberdeen" with lantern illustrations, followed by, The Story of the Castlegate and The Friars in Aberdeen.
Children were invited to write an essay on the subject of each lecture and local history books such as "The Old Deeside Road" were awarded as prizes.
The lectures were described as "a delightful experience for everyone concerned" and "the subsequent essays sent in were a pleasure to read". To ensure blind people were included, from 1916 the lectures were delivered separately at the Asylum for the Blind at their social evenings and we are told "heckling" the lecturer was encouraged!
Treasure 98: Kissing postcards
317 To celebrate Valentine's Day, we have chosen to display four historic postcards from our collections conveying messages of love and friendship.
The postcards are slightly smaller than those in circulation nowadays and they all have a different title, written in capital letters and in colour on the top of the cards. Up until the end of the 19th century, most postcards presented an undivided back; England was the first country to divide the back of the postcards in 1902, before France in 1904, Germany in 1905 and the United States in 1907. It allowed people to write both the message and the address of their recipient on the same side. The front side was then mainly used for the picture or artwork. Postcards can be a useful tool for learning more about society and people's interests and sense of humour.
The text on the postcard entitled 'The Science of Kissing' is from a publication called The People. It first appeared in British newspapers in 1866 and has been republished many times since. Amusingly, the author of the text gives some tips to improve a kissing performance and describes in detail what a proper kiss on the lips should feel like: "People will kiss, yet not one in a hudred [sic] knows how to extract bliss from lovely lips, any more than he knows how to make diamonds from charcoal. And yet it is easy, at least for us. First know whom you are going to kiss. Don't make a mistake, although a mistake may be good."
Want to find out more about the art of kissing in time for St. Val's Day? Check out our interactive exhibition on the touchscreen! |